qa knowledge base & course materials proposal -...
TRANSCRIPT
2
ECApedia – European Experts Training
Portal.
Knowledge base and course materials
proposal.
Copyright © 2011 by the European Consortium for Accreditation in higher education
Authors: Wojciech Wrona & Maciej Markowski
All rights reserved. This information may be used freely and copied for non‐commercial
purposes, provided that the source is acknowledged
(© European Consortium for Accreditation).
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
3
Table of content
1. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 4
1.1. About the E‐TRAIN project ..................................................................................... 4
1.2. About the ECApedia ............................................................................................... 4
1.3. About this document ............................................................................................. 5
2. The Knowledge Base ................................................................................................. 6
2.1. Overview of the content ........................................................................................ 6
2.1.1. Training materials. 7 2.1.2. Guidelines for organizing the experts training 7 2.1.3. European QA documents 7 2.1.4. Higher education systems descriptions 8 2.1.5. QA agencies’ descriptions 9
2.2. Adding and editing pages ..................................................................................... 10
2.3. Navigation ............................................................................................................ 14
2.4. Special pages ........................................................................................................ 16
2.5. Searching the materials ....................................................................................... 17
3. Training materials ................................................................................................... 20
3.1. Theoretical articles ............................................................................................... 20
3.2. Practical exercises ................................................................................................ 22
3.3. Training assignments ........................................................................................... 25
Annex 1. Template for the description of a higher education system ......................... 27
Annex 2. Template for description of QA agency’s procedures ........................................ 29
Annex 3. Template for description of a higher education system .................................... 30
1.
1.1.
highe
suppo
progr
share
1.2.
shop
meth
brow
T
T
Intro
. Abo
he over
knowled
equippe
er education
ort this over
ramme for e
e experts am
. Abo
he ECAp
practice
platform
for experts
hodologies.
wse structure
T
T
oductio
out the E
rall aim of
dgeable, and
ed to partici
n institutions
rall aim. The
experts in Q
mong QA agen
out the E
pedia is a to
es, new ideas
m for electro
s looking for
ECApedia o
d materials.
on
E-TRAIN
the E‐TRAIN
d internatio
pate in qual
s under revie
first objectiv
QA procedur
ncies in Euro
ECApedi
ool for conve
s as well as
onic presenta
r additional
organizes co
4
project
N project is
onally exper
lity assuranc
ew. There a
ve of the pro
es. The seco
ope.
ia
eniently sha
relevant doc
ation of mat
practical inf
ntent into
to facilitate
rienced exp
ce (QA) proc
re two main
oject is to de
ond was to
ring and en
cuments and
terials and is
formation a
linked cate
e the sharin
erts who w
cedures, to t
n objectives
evelop a Euro
develop a p
hancing kno
d training ma
s intended t
bout QA pr
gories allow
ng of traine
will be bett
the benefit
developed
opean trainin
programme
owledge, goo
aterials. It is
o be one sto
rocedures an
wing users
ed,
er
of
to
ng
to
od
s a
op
nd
to
5
The ECApedia is based on the popular and well‐known wiki system and therefore facilitates
cooperation between users. It also allows for quick modification of content (adding,
deleting, modifying and keeping up to date) directly from the browser without mediation
of skilled IT professionals.
1.3. About this document
uality Assurance Knowledge Base & Course Materials Proposal is an outline of
the selection of materials chosen to be incorporated in the QA Knowledge
Base, the way those documents are presented, agreed templates for content,
as well as information on navigating and developing the website.
It is not intended to summarize nor reflect full content of the Knowledge Base (as due to its
dynamic content it is virtually impossible) but rather to depict how features included in
database can be of help in the efforts QA agencies make to ensure that QA experts are
highly qualified, skilled and equipped in up to date knowledge on QA matters.
Q
ECApedia facilitates cooperation between users
and allows for the quick modification of the
content without depending on IT professionals
2.
conte
the d
of ind
docu
any d
to ga
an or
2.1.
The K
guide
QA o
in the
their
Know
is cal
the E
T
The
he Know
benefitt
modern
ent preventi
database can
dependent t
ment constit
desired orde
ther materia
rdered struct
. Ove
Knowledge B
elines and go
n both Euro
e involved c
activities,
wledge Base
led the Euro
CApedia.
T
Know
wledge Base
ting from tr
tools allow
ng the Know
n be express
terms, conce
tutes an inte
r. To preven
als into cate
ture of its dy
erview o
Base brings t
ood practice
pean and na
countries co
extent of
developed w
pean Expert
ledge
e acts as a m
raditional m
wing dynamic
wledge Base
ed as a alph
epts, articles
egral article
t readers fro
gories sugge
ynamic conte
of the co
together tra
es for organ
ational level.
mbined with
internationa
within the E‐T
s Training Po
6
Base
modern ency
methods of g
c control (ad
from becom
habetically o
s, etc with a
allowing visi
om getting lo
esting to visi
ent.
ntent
ining materi
izing and tr
In addition,
h detailed d
al cooperat
TRAIN projec
ortal. It can b
yclopaedia o
gathering id
dding, modif
ming outdate
rdered “glos
an implemen
itors to read
ost, the Know
itors any rela
als for expe
aining event
it describes
escription o
ion and pr
ct is develop
be easily acc
of QA in hig
deas and do
fying, enhan
ed. The gene
ssary” interp
nted search
d any numbe
wledge Base
ated content
rts and QA a
ts, documen
higher educ
f QA agenci
rocedures i
ped as the “E
ess from the
her educatio
ocuments an
ncing) over i
ral concept
preted as a li
engine. Eve
er of entries
was designe
t and creatin
agencies sta
nts concernin
cation system
ies – scope
n force. Th
ECApedia” an
e main page
on
nd
its
of
ist
ery
in
ed
ng
ff,
ng
ms
of
he
nd
of
7
2.1.1. Training materials.
This module’s aim is to provide the trainers and the participants of the training session the
training materials which can be used for training purposes. The initial content of this
section was developed and used during the E‐TRAIN pilot experts training sessions. More
detailed description of the types and possible usage of the materials is presented in
Chapter 3: Training materials.
2.1.2. Guidelines for organizing the experts training
This section contains materials designed for the trainers. It should be beneficial especially
for the trainers with limited experience in organizing and conducting training for QA
experts. The content of this section was entirely developed within the E‐TRAIN project.
The Knowledge Base not only points out materials which could be useful during the
training sessions for experts but also gives opportunity to get familiar with examples of
good practices and recommendations by presenting users with helpful materials, such as
for example, the ECA Guidelines for Training of Experts or ECA Guide to Good Practices for
Training of Experts.
This section also stresses the analysis of the training audience, carefully selected aims and
objectives with regard to contextual needs, structure and sequence of sessions.
This section additionally intends to facilitate discussion on the most promising and
effective design of evaluation tools for these training sessions, on enhancing
communication and cooperation among experts as well as on exercises improving stress
management and auto presentation skills of the experts.
2.1.3. European QA documents
This section provides a set of background documents regarding the QA landscape in
Europe. It contains all the declarations of the European ministers responsible for higher
education (i.e. Bologna, Bucharest, etc.), and reports produced by the most important
stakeholders organizations (i.e. Standards and Guidelines for QA in the European Higher
Education Area, ECA Code of Good Practice and ECA Principles for accreditation procedures
regarding joint programmes). Logged‐in users can add any document they consider
relevant for international QA experts.
2.1.4
The i
in hig
the n
descr
progr
count
relev
ECAp
4. Hig
ntention to
gher educati
national high
ription of ty
rammes tau
tries is open
ant template
pedia.
her educa
make the Kn
on necessita
her educatio
ypes of inst
ght and a v
n and any na
e (Annex 1)
ation syst
nowledge Ba
ated a comm
n systems in
titutions rec
visual prese
ational body
can obtain a
8
tems desc
se the one‐s
mon approac
n Europe. Th
cognized in
ntation of t
y able to pro
a login and p
criptions
stop shop fo
h to present
his at least c
the given c
the degree
ovide the inf
password in o
r readers int
t thorough in
consists of a
country, all
structure. T
formation in
order to con
terested in Q
nformation o
an overview,
types of th
he list of th
n line with th
ntribute to th
QA
on
a
he
he
he
he
2
T
m
to
T
te
o
h
2.1.5. Q
aking into ac
may differ fro
o date and v
hat was the
emplate for
f the agenci
igher educat
QA agenc
ccount that
om country t
ery detailed
e fundament
QA agencies
ies describe
tion systems
cies’ desc
roles of the
to country it
information
tal aim that
s and agreein
d in the ECA
s mentioned
9
riptions
QA agencies
t is importan
n on their act
was taken
ng on deman
Apedia is als
above.
s in the natio
nt to give use
tivities on va
into accoun
nded conten
so open, jus
onal higher e
ers of the Kn
rious levels.
nt in the dev
t (see Annex
st like the de
education sy
nowledge Ba
velopment o
x 2 and 3). T
escriptions o
stems
ase up
of the
he list
of the
2.2.
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10
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11
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13
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14
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15
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16
2.4. Special pages
Special pages are pages that are created by the wiki software on demand. They are located
in their own namespace and are not editable directly as other pages are.
Some special pages depend on the preferences that have been set by a user, e.g. the
number of titles which are displayed on a user's watchlist.
The special pages are grouped in several categories, depending on the content of the type
of report or information they are providing:
Section Features
Maintenance reports reports useful for maintenance of the articles within the ECApedia. The user can see the report on i.e. the most wanted pages, categories, uncategorized pages, dead‐end pages, broken redirects, etc
Lists of pages information about all pages in the ECApedia presented in different manners: list of all pages, list of pages starting with prefix, list of categories, etc
Login / sign up Enables user to log in to the ECApedia
Users and rights information about the ECApedia users and their contribution
Recent changes and logs reports on the changes in the ECApedia articles and files
Media reports and uploads provides information about files uploaded to the ECApedia
Wiki data and tools Reports on statistics and rankings of the most popular pages
Redirecting special pages
High use pages Reports on the most frequently linked to articles, categories, files, etc.,
Page tools Set of tools for comparing, exporting and tracking pages
Other special pages
2
T
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to
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id
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he articles p
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After typing in
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hing for inte
he Portal’s ho
l result in dis
17
materials
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s by using the
phrase there
ne works two
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resting artic
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18
the ECApedia
ss to all the a
a is by using
articles refer
the glossary
rring to the t
y. This
terminology
C
A
th
CATEGORIES
Almost every
hrough the r
article is ass
related articl
signed to a c
es.
19
ategory. Sele
ecting a cateegory allows a user to broowse
3.
One o
for na
and
durin
traini
3.1.
The f
of iss
exper
With
and is
The t
dime
syste
articl
lots o
Trai
of the most
ational and i
used by log
ng the traini
ing materials
. The
first type of
sues importa
rt’s responsi
in the E‐TRA
s available in
text provides
nsions of ex
ms. Due to
es or other
of additional
ning m
important ai
internationa
gged‐in users
ing sessions
s: theoretica
eoretica
the training
ant for the
bilities.
AIN project,
n the Trainin
s a short des
xternal QA
wiki system
external con
information
materia
ims of the Kn
l training pu
s. The initia
of the E‐TR
l articles, pra
l articles
materials ar
training ses
the article E
g materials s
cription of th
systems wh
m of interna
ntent. Thus t
n which migh
20
als
nowledge Ba
rposes. The
al training m
RAIN projec
actical exerc
s
re the article
ssions and fu
External QA
section of th
he European
hich can be
l links, the t
the text is at
ht be helpful
ase is to prov
training mat
materials we
t. There are
ises and trai
es that provi
urther fulfilm
approaches
he European
n QA landsca
used for ch
text is rich
ttractive for
in understan
vide the trai
terials can be
ere develope
e three type
ning assignm
ide theoretic
ment of the
in Europe w
Experts Trai
pe and an ov
haracterising
with relatio
the readers
nding the tex
ning materia
e freely adde
ed and teste
es of possib
ments.
cal knowledg
e internation
was develope
ning Portal.
verview of te
g external Q
ns with oth
s and provid
xt.
als
ed
ed
ble
ge
nal
ed
en
QA
er
es
22
3.2. Practical exercises
Any successful training session, requires both theoretical content as well as more
practically oriented exercises. E‐TRAIN training sessions use several practical exercises.
Most of them are available in the Training materials section of the European Experts
Training Portal of the ECApedia. As an introduction, two exemplary exercises are available
online.
A simplified grid of programme evaluation arrangements within the EHEA is designed to
explore the different relationships between programme evaluation and institutional
evaluation within the EHEA. The users are provided with the matrix which they should use
to identify the ‘box(es)’ that correspond to the current QA arrangements in the system
they are most familiar with. The results provide a practical, interactive discussion about the
similarities and differences in particular national QA systems, among the training group
Table: A simplified grid of programme evaluation arrangements within the EHEA
Main features of PROGRAMME evaluation
‘External’ Evaluationby a QA agency of ..
‘Internal’ Evaluation by the HEI’s QA procedures of ..
Programme proposal prior to it being
offered by an HEI
programme being
delivered by HEI
(cyclical basis)
Programme proposal prior to it being
offered by the HEI
programme being
delivered by the HEI
(cyclical basis)
Main features of p
rogram
me de
sign
Curriculum set largely by external regulation law/ministry/etc. HEI has small (up to 15%) opportunity to ‘add flavour’
Curriculum subject to external regulation e.g. law/ministry/etc. HEI has some (up 15‐50%) opportunity to ‘add flavour’
Curriculum is determined (almost) entirely by the HEI but on the basis of various ‘external reference points’
.
23
The second exercise, Known and assumed priorities for the QA of higher education, aims to identify different stakeholders points of view on
higher education. Its main goal is to raise awareness of different perspectives in the perception of the role of higher education. The user is
first asked to fill in the table from his/her own experience. Secondly, he/she should fill in the boxes making assumptions of the point of view
of different stakeholders (i.e. employer, student, graduate, parent , alumnus).
‘the various stakeholders’
employer student graduate parent alumnus Minister /(sr. civil servant )
Rectors / senior manager
Professor / faculty member
Institutional administrator
Tax payer
Other?
Mark the roles you have experience of
(your ‘knowns’)
Mark the roles where you will make assumptions
(your ‘unknowns’)
In each ‘known’ column .... choose and order the top 5 priorities .. and then tick others .. that the QA of HE ought to include In each ‘unknown’ column ... tick those aspects that you assume such stakeholders would expect to be included .. Programmes are well designed
Programmes are delivered properly
Programmes are always being improved
Graduates can do what you would expect from the name of their degree
Graduates will be (more) employable
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The programme has a good ranking
The institution has a good ranking
The institution provides ‘value for money’
Students are assessed fairly and consistently
Actions on institutional strategic policies are monitored and published
Results of student surveys are published
Institutions should have – and monitor annually – a strategy for improvement of T & L
Academic staff undertake continuous professional development
The list above is not complete .. please add any other items you think should have been included
The results might be a good starting point for the discussion on the roles of different factors that play a role for different stakeholder groups.
This exercise is important for preparing experts for taking different perspectives into account when undertaking QA assessments.
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Annex 1. Template for the description of a higher education system
• Agency's position within the national higher education system o Description of the agency
A short introduction of the agency
o The history of the agency
A brief summary of the history of the agency (E.g. date of establishment, predecessor agencies, mergers, etc.
o Legal framework
A short description of the legal framework which regulates the activities of the agency and outline the agency’s legal responsibilities.
o Independence*
A brief statement on independence. This can relate to the legal position of the agency, the legal framework, the funding of activities. This item is intended to demonstrate how the agency ensures its independence towards governmental bodies (minister, ministry, ...) and towards higher education institutions.
o Funding*
Explanation of the sources of funds
• QA procedures o Main procedures (brief description)
A list and a brief description of the most common procedures undertaken by the agency.
o Consequences of QA and accreditation decisions
Explanation of the consequences of the QA and/ or accreditation decisions (positive and negative decisions).
o Validity of the decision(s)
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Period of validity of the accreditation decisions
o Publication policy
A description of the publication policy of the agency. E.g. are the self‐ evaluation and the report from the experts published? And, are both positive and negative decisions published? How are the internal considerations of the agency communicated?
o (Legal) appeal system
Explanation of the internal and/or external system of (legal) appeal functions.
o Figures on QA/A procedures*
Estimation of the number of the QA and/ or accreditation procedures carried out each year by the agency, including division between positive and negative results
• International activities o Member of international QA networks / organizations
Indication of the membership in international organizations / networks relevant for the QA
o External reviews, compliance with ESG
Indication of the external reviews against international standards, such as conformity with the European Standards and Guidelines or INQAAHE’s Guidelines on Good Practice. National reviews without international results are not considered relevant.
o Accreditation procedures in another jurisdiction
Involvement of the agency in any accreditation procedures in another jurisdiction
o Recognition of foreign qualifications*
Description of the agency’s relationship with the national authority for recognition of foreign higher education qualifications.
o Agreements concerning the mutual recognition of accreditation
Information on participation in mutual or multilateral recognition agreements, including indication of the other agencies involved.
*optional
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Annex 2. Template for description of QA agency’s procedures
• Procedure of programme / institutional accreditation / assessment / audit.
A detailed description of the ex‐post quality assessment procedures
undertaken by the agency.
• Procedure of giving opinions on applications / initial accreditation
A detailed description of the ex‐ante assessment procedures undertaken
by the agency, If applicable.
• Appeal procedure
A detailed description of the internal and/or external appeal procedures from the agencies decisions
• Procedure of selection of experts
A detailed description of the agency’s selection of experts procedure, including selection criteria and appointment procedure
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Annex 3. Template for description of a higher education system
• Short overview
A brief introduction to the higher education system, including a brief history, organization, context, etc.
• Key facts and figures on the system
Indication of the most important facts and figures about the system i.e.
authorities, Important institutions, number of students, number of higher
institutions, etc.
• Types of institutions
A indication and description of the main categories of higher education
institutions
• Types of programmes and degrees
Indication and a brief description of the types of programmes and degrees
provided within the system i.e. First cycle, second cycle, long‐cycle,
doctorate; qualification framework, etc.
• Links to relevant national pages